Educational inequalities in parental care time: Cross-national evidence from Belgium, Denmark, Spain, and the United Kingdom

Pablo Gracia*, Joris Ghysels

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticleAcademicpeer-review

Abstract

This study uses time-diary data for dual-earner couples from Belgium, Denmark, Spain, and the United Kingdom to analyze educational inequalities in parental care time in different national contexts. For mothers, education is significantly associated with parenting involvement only in Spain and the United Kingdom. In Spain these differences are largely explained by inequalities in mothers' time and monetary resources, but not in the United Kingdom, where less-educated mothers disproportionally work in short parttime jobs. For fathers, education is associated with parenting time in Denmark, and particularly in Spain, while the wife's resources substantially drive these associations. On weekends, the educational gradient in parental care time applies only to Spain and the United Kingdom, two countries with particularly large inequalities in parents' opportunities to engage in parenting. The study shows country variations in educational inequalities in parenting, suggesting that socioeconomic resources, especially from mothers, shape important variations in parenting involvement. (C) 2016 Published by Elsevier Inc.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)166-180
Number of pages15
JournalSocial Science Research
Volume63
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 1 Mar 2017

Keywords

  • 4 COUNTRIES
  • CHILD-CARE
  • Cross-national research
  • EMPLOYMENT
  • Education
  • FATHERS SHARE
  • INTACT FAMILIES
  • INVOLVEMENT
  • MOTHERS
  • Parental care
  • Time use
  • WORK
  • Work-family policy

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